


Nino's Purrfect Little Kingdom

by sky_fish



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: #turtletaxi, Anyways, Family Fluff, I hope you at least find it cute somehow, M/M, Or too serious for what it should be, Pets, Sho and Nino and Satoshi are Aiba and Jun's pets - literally, Slice of Life, This might be a little silly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-15
Updated: 2019-04-15
Packaged: 2020-01-13 18:46:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18474898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sky_fish/pseuds/sky_fish
Summary: Aiba and Jun are living together in a happy relationship. Aiba has a dog, Jun has a turtle and actually, they agreed that two pets were enough for them. That's until one day, Aiba brings a soaking wet kitten back home and their dog immediately falls in love with the cute little rascal.





	Nino's Purrfect Little Kingdom

**Author's Note:**

> Also known as "The one in which Jun thought he's the king but actually it's the pets ruling the place". 
> 
> To clear a bit of confusion in advance, let me explain *clears throat*. This is so to say the "origin story" of this little family, based on some very amusing prompts on twitter, started by the lovelies AJ-chan (@ajandrea_mtp), Day-chan (@kasanaruphrase) and Windy-chan (@windy_salto) who keep feeding me with ideas and made sure I stay inspired (and will be responsible if I die from laughter within the next few months, just you all know lol). Apparently, _someone_ came up with the idea to associate Sho with a big friendly dog and Nino with a snarky cat and then... things got a little out of hand? (*I'm looking at all three of you lol* XD). Special thanks also to Misaiba (@misaiba) and Lyn-chan (@lynsagiura72) for jumping on the train and joining our party lol. Thanks girls, for making this so much fun. I warned you that I might put some of your prompts into a fic (couldn't fit them all but please, keep staying creative on tw, I really appreciate it!), so here you go, this is for you.
> 
> Seriously, if you need a laugh and want to learn more especially about the pets' POVs, check out their absolutely funny GIF-posts on twitter (most of them are tagged with #turtletaxi, not that this was my idea *coughs* and check out Lyn's supercute fanart, especially), please, they really make my day.

The weekend has come, finally, which meant that both Aiba as well as his boyfriend, Jun, would have some well-deserved time off. If they followed their usual pattern, they would stay home for the biggest part of the weekend, cuddling in bed for as long as they could, enjoying breakfast together, continue cuddling on the couch, going for a walk together with Aiba's dog in between and then coming back to cuddle some more and... well, let's call it doing some exercise.

Today was a bit different, though. First of all, it was raining cats and dogs. Second, there was something really important the couple ran out of, as Aiba noticed after _morning exercise_. Obviously, there was nothing Aiba could do about the weather, however, as the responsible adult he was – or at least tried to be – there was something he could do to take care of the shortage of the much-needed supplies before returning to cuddling time with his gorgeous boyfriend.

"Jun, I'm heading out for a bit, I'll be right back!" the man yelled from the entrance area of their shared apartment as soon as he had slipped on his sneakers and pulled over a warm jacket.

"Won't you take Sho-chan out with you?" Jun's voice came from the living room, where the man was relaxing on the couch with a book in his hands.

As if this was a prompt, there was shuffling on the wooden floor, and it didn't take long before Aiba's dog, a fluffy, golden retriever was standing in front of him. He was already holding his leash between his teeth, drenched in drool. His large, pink tongue was dangling from one side of his mouth that made him look as if he was constantly smiling, and his tail was up and wiggling in happy anticipation for a walk.

Aiba chuckled softly and went down on his knees so he could better reach his arms around the dog's neck and pull him into a big hug. After ruffling his fur, he drew back a little, looking at him apologetically.

"I'm sorry, Sho-chan, the weather is horrible today, let's hope the rain stops soon and we can go for a walk another time, yeah?" he suggested, petting the dog's head, before raising his voice again. "Jun, can you put him on the treadmill for a few minutes, while I'm gone?"

More shuffling, this time slower and more chilled, and then, there was Jun standing in front of the cuddling hairy ball made out of Aiba and Sho. Aiba couldn't help but let his eyes wander over at the sight of his boyfriend leaning casually against the wall in the hallway. Even on his days off and in loungewear Jun looked like someone who just popped out alive from the page of a fashion magazine. The dark pants he was wearing looked stylish and matched perfectly with the black and white striped socks and fluffy slippers, as well as the comfy looking oversized cardigan that only loosely covered the black t-shirt with that low neck, he was wearing underneath, which revealed just the perfect amount of his collarbones for Aiba to notice them appreciatingly.

"You know this is ridiculous, right?" Jun said, raising one eyebrow and lifting his right hand to push his glasses a bit higher on the bridge of his nose.

His eyes looked still kind of sleepy and the slightly longish, disheveled dark brown hair that fell in soft curls around his face made him look so damned attractive to Aiba, that the young man had to pull himself together not to jump the other man right here right now in this damned hallway and pin him against the wall to... No! There was something important he had to take care of, first, so he would be responsible and wait until later. So, Aiba tried his best to shift his attention from Jun and back to the fluffy dog in his arms.

"Our big boy needs to run every day," he said, ruffling through Sho's cream coloured fur again and scratching the spots behind his ears – Sho's favourite. "Even if the weather is as bad as today, I don't want him to get sick and don't forget that _you_ are the one complaining that wet dogs stink!"

Aiba threw his boyfriend a playful pout, knowing that Jun, even if he tried to play it cool, was not immune to that. Jun sighed, bent down and reached for the dog to take him back with him into the living room.

"Whatever," he replied, trying to avoid Aiba's look.

"Thanks, Darling," the other man replied with a wide smile. "I'll be back soon, I promise!"

"What are you going to buy anyway?" Jun asked, looking at his partner who was getting ready, reaching for the umbrella leaning in the corner next to the apartment door. "Is it really that important that you can't stay here with me and watch some TV or so instead of going out... _there_?"

Aiba blushed slightly at Jun's way of saying "let's continue cuddling", but tried to hide it, pretending to be busy searching for his wallet in his jacket's pocket.

"Well... we ran out of something important," he simply stated. "I'll be quick, OK?"

Jun hummed. "Fine. But don't catch a cold, you hear me?"

Aiba turned around to face his boyfriend and flashed him a confident smile. "I won't!"

"You said that last time and then I had to take care of you for a whole week," Jun pouted, but Aiba's smile only broadened.

He couldn't tell Jun that he actually had been well again five days after he had fallen sick last time and that he only had pretended to be ill for a few more days because it had been too adorable how his boyfriend had been taking care of him.

"Do I get a good-bye kiss?" Aiba asked, and immediately both, Jun as well as Sho, were attacking him, causing him to crush against the apartment door with his back, drowning in laughter.

While Sho tried to climb on Aiba's lap and to reach his face with his tongue – he only managed to reach his chin though, Aiba pushing it upwards, giggling – Jun cupped his boyfriend's face, towering over him. He leaned down, looking at him intensely, and closing his eyes only when their lips were just a few inches apart. Aiba sighed voicelessly when their lips met in a soft kiss that might have lasted a little longer than it needed to, but Aiba appreciated that, a lot. With one hand curled around Sho, trying to calm him down, and one hand reaching up to grasp his partner's shirt, Aiba could have stayed like this forever, but all good things must come to an end. When Jun parted their lips and stood up straight again, leaving Aiba gasping for more, he grinned at the other man.

"That was only the preview," Jun said, naughtily.

"You mean, it was a _teaser_ ," Aiba giggled while he struggled slightly to stand up again, still being showered with love and affection by his dog.

Jun just kept grinning before he finally showed mercy and let a small whistle escape from his lips in order to shift Sho's attention towards him. The dog finally let go of Aiba and followed Jun into the living room, who just looked back over his shoulder, still giving his boyfriend the same snarky look.

"I love you too!" Aiba said, throwing his boyfriend a failed wink before he turned around too and finally pushed the door open to exit the apartment. "See you later!"

"Take care on your way!" Jun replied from the distance.

=^. .^=

Still smiling, Aiba quickly made his way down from the third floor, accidentally stepping into a first large puddle of water as soon as he left the staircase. He immediately stepped aside and opened his umbrella to shield himself from the heavy raindrops pouring down from the grey skies as he continued his way. While he walked through the rain, humming some random song he heard on the radio earlier, his thoughts were still with his boyfriend and the happy feeling that man always triggered inside him, warming Aiba's heart. 

Remembering the first time he met this gorgeous man named Matsumoto Jun, Aiba still couldn't believe his luck. It has been just a few years ago at the airport. Aiba had been in a hurry to reach his gate, only to find out that his flight to Indonesia had been canceled and the passengers needed to be split onto different other. later flights. It just so happened that Aiba got an empty seat right next to a handsome young man who seemed to be heading to the same holiday destination as him, and while they got into one conversation after the other during their flight, they also noticed how they got into each other. When they reached their destination hours later, the two men had exchanged numbers and promises to meet up during their vacation. The end to the story was that Jun called the airline and asked them to book his flight back home on the same plane as Aiba's.

Jun might not be the type of boyfriend to straight up tell someone "I love you" countless times a day, nor was he the type calling Aiba by pet names, as he preferred straight up first names, but Aiba didn't need that. The way Jun acted towards him, the way he looked at him, the smallest things he did for him, all the interactions between them were filled with love. Aiba could feel it with every single cell of his body, each and every day, and it was everything he ever wanted. 

Like for example, even when Jun had always insisted on _not really being a dog person_ (he's more a _turtle person_ ), in the end, he had started to love Aiba's dog Sho just as much as Aiba loved his pet. Jun had also known that there was no way Aiba would leave his beloved dog behind, when they decided to move in together some months ago, it was Aiba plus Sho, or no Aiba at all in Jun's apartment. You already know the outcome of _that_ story, too.

It took Aiba a little longer this time to reach his destination. The next pharmacy was actually only located a few blocks away, however, due to construction works on the way, the young man had to take a detour. It wasn't a big deal, so just about a few minutes later, he was standing in the pharmacy, cracking his brain about which types and brands they should try out this time – they were both quite experimental, amusingly so – and he settled for some new types that he hadn't seen in stores before. In another aisle, he grabbed some hay fever medicine to stock up their medicine chest, as well as some other small gimmicks they might need, and just before paying, he grabbed some of Jun's favourite chocolate bits that where conveniently placed right next to the cashier.

Everything stored in a small plastic bag, Aiba stepped out into the rain again, but this time, he hesitated for a moment. Wasn't there some kind of shortcut to their apartment complex? Driven by impulse, he turned to walk in the opposite direction to the one he came from, keeping his eyes on the small one-family houses lining the street, until he found an alley between two of them, exactly what he was searching for.

The alley was narrow, not too narrow for people to pass through, but too narrow for Aiba's large plastic umbrella, so he closed it and pulled his jacket's hood over his head. He quickened his steps so he could reach the other side of the alley faster, however, just when he almost reached the other side, he stopped.

Aiba frowned slightly. Was there something wrong with his ears or had there been a noise? He perked up his ears in order to catch the noise that startled him, but the only thing he could hear was the drumming of raindrops onto rooftops and asphalt. Maybe, it had just been the rain, he wondered, tilting his head slightly, and taking another step forward. But then, there it was again. The noise was coming from behind him. It was higher than the gentle drumming of the rain. It was...

Quickly, Aiba turned around, alarmed, his eyes searching for the possible source of the noise. He scanned the alley, there were a few trash cans, a bicycle, and an old cardboard box, soaking wet from the rainy weather. Aiba's frown deepened. Then, there was the noise again. He stepped forward, his eyes focused on the cardboard box. Was it possible?

When he stopped just right in front of the box, he noticed a loose piece of paper hanging from it with bold letters written in black waterproof marker, advertising whatever content of the box as _"For Free"_. It was clear that he had been right. He wondered how he hadn't noticed this when passing it for the first time, but at least now he could see the source of the high-pitched noise – no, a _voice_ – clearly. Aiba bent forward, so he could take a closer look into the box, and what he saw then, almost broke his heart.

There was a single, small, colourful bundle of wet fur pushed into the farthest corner of the box, obviously trying to keep dry, but not very lucky in this aspect as the rain just poured inside the box, soaking the material and dampening the little bundle's fur. It was clear that the tiny, shivering thing had been abandoned by someone. There were no signs of a mother animal being around, nor were there other small furballs, so Aiba assumed it must be left all by itself. The man swallowed hard, his eyebrows furrowed and his hands clenching into fists. How could anyone be so cruel?! Abandoning a small, helpless animal on the streets, no, worse, in a narrow alley where most people would probably not even pass through, especially not when the weather was so bad and people avoided going outside! The small thing continued screaming desperately, and Aiba immediately knew what he had to do.

The man crouched down, placing his folded umbrella and the small shopping bag onto the street, so he had both hands free, and then he reached his hands inside of the wet cardboard box, carefully, until his fingers touched the small animal. First, it stopped screaming and tried to push even further into the corner of the box, apparently scared by the stranger's hand. Aiba held his breath but stayed determined and tried to scoop the little thing into his palms as gently as possible.

"Alright," he exhaled in a whisper, as he finally managed to breathe again. "There we go..."

Carefully, he pulled the small animal, which had panicky started to squeal, out of the box and immediately brought it close to his chest, leaning forward so that he was forming a shield from the rain. Aiba slightly cringed as the cold wet raindrops slid down his neck, but he ignored it, his focus solely on the little creature in his arms that just opened its tiny mouth, preparing for another scream.

"Meow!" it squealed once more before it went quiet again.

It was a small calico kitten, its fur damp and flat against its small body. It must be a real beauty, the pattern in its face was a mixture of red, black and white, its nose dotted with red spots, the colour around the eyes black, guiding up to its ears where the tips were coloured red again. There was a tiny black spot on its chin and its big round eyes that were now staring at Aiba, were of a light brownish, orangey colour, almost matching with the reddish spots of its fur. It looked so cute that Aiba's heart constricted. He was sold.

There was no way he would leave this little thing behind, although he expected Jun (who also was _especially_ not a _cat person_ , as he used to proclaim) to protest when he'd bring a kitten home without asking in advance. But the poor baby animal was so thin, and it looked just barely old enough to survive on its own – and that was probably only if the weather wasn't as cruel as today and if it actually might find a way to get out of that damned box. Who could be so heartless saying "no" to such a lovely creature? At least Aiba couldn't.

"Shhh, there, there," Aiba said in a low voice in order not to appear scary to the kitten. He smiled. "Everything will be OK, I promise."

The kitten just blinked at Aiba, as if it wasn't sure what was going on, but Aiba noticed that its small body had stopped shivering. He smiled again. Then, he unzipped the collar of his jacket and carefully put the small animal inside of it, pressing it against the warm fabric of the hoodie he was wearing underneath. He pulled the zipper back up a little bit, to ensure the kitten wouldn't just drop out from the cave he had created for it but could still get enough fresh air to breathe. He also made sure to hold the little thing secure from the outside so it wouldn't get lost inside of his jacket. Finally, he reached for his shopping bag and the umbrella with one hand, slipped the bag's handles around his wrist and fumbled to grasp his umbrella. 

Slowly, he stood up, carefully making sure that the kitten was still in place, and walked on.

The small passenger didn't start screaming again, which Aiba counted as a positive sign, and it stayed in place, behaving well, so nothing unexpected happened on his way home. The umbrella shielded them both from the still heavy rain, and after losing his way just for a few minutes (so much for the _shortcut_ ), the man finally reached home again.

=^. .^=

As always, Sho was the first who welcomed Aiba home. The dog came running down the hallway with a cheerful bark as soon as he heard the key turning in the lock, and when the apartment door flew open, the dog jumped up his owner's legs, his paws on Aiba's thighs faster than the man could close the door behind him.

"Down, Sho-chan, down, be careful," Aiba said, trying to sound serious, but he couldn't help but grin at his friend's excited greeting. "I can't even take off my shoes if you attack me the first thing I enter!" he chuckled. Then, while sitting onto the step leading from the entrance up to the corridor, to get out of his sneakers, Aiba yelled towards the living room, "I'm back!"

"Welcome home!" Jun's voice replied, sending the corners of Aiba's lips upwards again.

While Aiba was still fighting with his shoelaces, Sho came closer again after running down the corridor once and coming back to his owner. This time, he didn't jump at him, however, when he came closer to Aiba, he seemed to notice something unusual about the man, and suddenly started sniffing at him, as if he had picked up a scent.

"Oh," Aiba said, immediately following his instincts and reaching both hands up to the bulge in his jacket, where the kitten he had picked up earlier was curling up against his chest and now started to move again. "Shhhhh."

Aiba struggled visibly, as he tried to keep the kitten calm while keeping Sho at distance too, just to be on the safe side. The dog seemed to be very excited about whatever was happening here. The man didn't want Jun to get wind of all the ruckus, yet, as he knew his boyfriend wouldn't be as over the moon about their new family addition as Aiba was, at least not without a little persuasion, but first, he had to take care of the kitten properly.

The man hurried to get back up, keeping his jacket on and immediately rushed into the bathroom, Sho following on his heels. Inside, Aiba quickly reached for a towel from the cabinet underneath the sink, and then carefully started to unzip his jacket completely. The kitten though did not seem convinced that this was the right and safest moment to come out from its hiding place, and so it just stayed curled against Aiba's chest, pressing its little head against him.

"Now, Sho-chan, sit!" Aiba commanded the dog, who immediately obeyed, even if he seemed to have a hard time listening and not jumping at Aiba – or the hidden kitten, to be exact – again. "Stay! Everything's fine, OK?" he lowered his voice. "I get that you are excited, and I'll let you meet our new friend any second, but you need to stay calm or it will get scared."

He eyed the dog suspiciously and raised his eyebrows as if to enforce his order, and Sho stood in place, a small whimpering noise escaping as if he gave in.

"Alright, my little friend, it's time to come out into your new home," Aiba directed at the small kitten, as he pulled off his jacket, which he quickly abandoned on top of the bathtub's edge while taking a hold of the small furry ball with one hand and the prepared fluffy towel with his other hand, wrapping it around the kitten.

Although Aiba's hoodie had already absorbed some of the moisture from the kitten's fur, it was still damp and so he started to carefully rub it dry. His action caused the small animal to meow again, which made Sho whimper silently and shuffle his paws on the bathroom floor. Shortly after, he was standing right beside Aiba, craning his neck curiously towards the bundle of fur and towel in his owner's hands.

"Stay back, Sho-chan, wait a second -" Aiba started, but in the end, he couldn't finish his sentence as he was interrupted by his boyfriend who showed up in the doorway at that moment.

"Masaki? Would you care to explain what's going on with you and Sho-chan? Hm? What have you got there?" Jun asked, entering the bathroom and coming closer to check on them.

Another high-pitched meow escaped from the little kitten's mouth.

Aiba didn't dare to turn around.

"Masaki?" Jun asked again, very slowly, after clearing his throat. His voice sounded calm, but also ice cold. Aiba could feel his boyfriend breathing down his neck, now. "Don't tell me you brought a _cat_ home."

Finally, Aiba turned around, his widest smile decorating his face and the kitten, wrapped tightly with the towel so that only its cute little face was showing, pressed against his chest. He chuckled, sheepishly.

"Oh, Jun, look who I found outside in an alley, it was completely alone and wet and abandoned in a soaked cardboard box -," Aiba started babbling, cradling the small animal in his hands.

"Seriously, Masaki, a cat?!" Jun glared at him in disbelief after observing the little fur ball. "Out of all possible options out there, you brought home a _cat_?!"

"I know, I know, cats aren't exactly your favourite animals but… look at it! It's a calico kitten, look at its beautiful fur pattern and those beautiful eyes and… isn't it just cute?" Aiba continued, slightly pushing the towel around the kitten's face back to reveal its absolutely adorable little colourful ears as he babbled on to hide the slight nervousness that had crept up inside of him. "Look how interesting the pattern of its fur is, did you know that no cat on earth has the exact same pattern as another? You can compare it to human's fingerprints, kind of. And look, doesn't it have the most beautiful, honey-coloured eyes you have ever seen?"

He was now holding the little kitten burrito right in front of his boyfriend's face. The kitten wriggled slightly in Aiba's grip, and hissed at Jun, who puffed his cheeks, knitted his eyebrows and gave the little animal a look that Aiba couldn't ultimately read – was it anger, was it heartbreak?

"See, it already hates me, that's why I can't be with cats!" Jun exclaimed, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"No, Jun, I'm sure it doesn't _hate_ you," Aiba said, patting the kitten and holding it a little closer to his boyfriend. "Come on, try to pat it, I'm sure you can make friends!"

Jun rolled his eyes, sighed and eventually reached out his hand, intending to give his partner's suggestion a try.

The kitten opened its tiny mouth and bit Jun's finger.

Aiba blanked.

Jun sighed again, resigned, not even trying to free his finger from the tiny kitten's mouth.

"I don't like you either, little brat," the man then grumbled at the kitten, pouting.

By now, Aiba had a hard time holding back from bursting into laughter. He seriously couldn't decide who was more adorable at that moment – the tiny bratty little kitten or his pouting boyfriend.

"Let him go, come on, let him go," Aiba whispered at the kitten, shaking it slightly until it loosened its hold on Jun's finger and meowed again, instead.

Jun drew back his finger, examining it. There was a little bite mark, but he wasn't bleeding.

"It's called amber, by the way," Jun simply stated after observing the little animal's face for another few seconds. The kitten was still staring at him, slightly suspicious. "The colour of its eyes, I mean."

"Does this mean, we can keep it?" Aiba asked with a wide grin when his boyfriend didn't continue talking and only stood there, looking all serious and handsome with his glasses sitting on his nose and his arms crossed again in front of his chest.

Jun sighed. "Masaki, no," he finally said, frowning. "Besides the fact that I probably will never be best friends with a cat… We have two pets already, we can't take care of another animal!"

Aiba's heart sank into his stomach. In order not to discredit Jun's affection towards his Satoshi, he didn't want to raise the argument that _Jun's_ pet – a turtle – didn't really require _that_ much care, though. Instead, he raised the inner corners of his eyebrows and pushed his lower lip forward, giving his boyfriend _that_ look while carefully pulling the kitten back and pressing it against him. He crouched down and lowered his head observing the little animal which looked right back at him with its cute big round amber eyes and meowed once more.

"But, look at it, Jun, it's completely frozen and it's so thin and tiny, we can't just throw it back out there on the streets to die," Aiba said, carefully continuing to rub the kitten's fur dry.

"We could find someone else to take care of it or bring it to a pets' shelter," Jun started, but looking at his partner, it was obvious, at least for Aiba, that those were not negotiable options.

Jun lifted one hand to his forehead to massage his temples. He sighed again before dropping his hand and looking at his boyfriend, who was still crouching on the floor, now being accompanied by Sho, who dared to approach Aiba and the kitten again, carefully, his big black soft nose coming closer to sniff the little animal.

"Look, Sho-chan, careful," Aiba whispered, but allowed the dog to further explore the newcomer.

The kitten didn't seem to care all that much and just stared into the dog's big brown eyes. It whimpered silently when Sho nudged his nose against its tiny face but didn't show any bigger reaction. Aiba smiled happily at the sight of the two animals slowly getting to know each other. Jun sighed.

"And please, do not make it sound as if I'd want to be responsible for a dead kitten, you know I'm not that heartless," the man said, sounding sulky, before he crouched down in front of his partner and watched the two animals too, even if more skeptical than Aiba. "Do you even know how to take care of a small kitten? We don't have anything here that we -"

"Our neighbour Satomi-chan has a cat, remember little Yuriko?" Aiba immediately replied. "Maybe she can lend us some stuff until we can get our own?"

"Why don't you go ask _her_ to take care of the kitten, then?" Jun dared to retort, but somehow, Aiba had an inkling that Jun wasn’t completely unaffected by the kitten's charm any longer, as his carefully outstretching hand towards the animal showed.

Aiba pouted again, shaking his head. " _I_ found the kitten and... I mean, look at it, Jun, look at it! Please?" he looked at his boyfriend, his eyes widened and his pout perfected.

Aiba knew that his puppy eyes could compete with Sho's if he wanted. He also knew that Jun was very weak to that and so, it wasn't too surprising when the other man finally gave in.

"OK,.. I'll go and talk to Satomi-chan," he said under another sign and got up again, turning to leave the bathroom. "You stay here and make sure that Sho-chan doesn't eat that poor little devil..."

"Sho-chan would never do that. He's the nicest dog on earth, after all!" Aiba protested vehemently.

"Still, aren't cats and dogs arch nemesis or something like that?" Jun asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Apparently, that's just a myth," Aiba said, and he could have given a whole lecture about the topic of how cats and dogs could actually be BFFs, but he found it easier to show his point, so he encouraged his dog to come a little closer again.

Sho nudged the little kitten once more, this time without any verbal reaction, and finally, he let his tongue run over the kitten's face, causing Aiba to laugh and loosen the grip around the towel a bit, so that the kitten could free its front legs, using them to paw the dog's nose from both sides, holding it in place.

"Look, they are already making friends," Aiba chuckled, but then, the kitten suddenly meowed aggressively and slapped one of its paws against Sho's nose so that the dog drew back a little, whimpering. Aiba stopped laughing. "Oh."

"OK, I guess we don't need to worry about _the cat_ , at least," Jun remarked, reaching for the dog's head to pat it encouragingly. "There, there, Sho-chan, don't let that little rascal scare you, you're much bigger than it and if you just opened your mouth wide enough..."

"Don't give him ideas, Jun! It's just nervous, it's so small and he's so big, maybe it's scared? Or it wants to play," Aiba immediately came to the kitten's defense. "Come here, Sho-chan, come here, it didn't mean it in a bad way..."

"Or it's just a little devil in an angel's outfit?" Jun suggested, chuckling. "Never trust a cat..."

"They'll get along!" Aiba protested, and apparently, Sho at least wanted to give it a second chance, as he approached again and this time, the kitten did not hit him. This time, it reached out its tiny paws again for Sho's nose, and when the dog allowed it to touch him, it meowed and finally licked the dog's nose, causing Sho to wag his tail joyfully.

"Awwww, look, it _kissed_ him back!" Aiba couldn't hold back his ecstasy.

Jun snorted. "OK, whatever."

"So we can keep it?" Aiba asked again, excitedly.

"What am I even supposed to say… you're so unfair, Masaki, really," Jun lamented, but it was clear that Aiba had already won. "Listen, we'll ask Satomi-chan first if she wants to keep it as company for Yuriko, and if not we can _think_ about it -"

Aiba opened his mouth for saying something, but Jun took a step back into the bathroom, leaning down, and reached out his finger to put it before his boyfriend's lips, making him stay quiet until he finished. 

"BUT… only, if those two truly get along AND if nothing happens to my Satoshi," he added, strictly, pointing between Sho and the kitten. "I'm not in the mood to have our apartment turned into a battlefield or anything of that sort! And -," the young man pouted once more, lowering his finger from Aiba's lips and leaning forward to his boyfriend to steal a small kiss from him before he looked deeply into his eyes, "You need to promise me that you won't fall in love with that kitten harder than you have fallen in love with me."

Aiba blushed, as he had not expected his boyfriend saying something like that, but in the end, he couldn't help it and smiled, feeling a little silly, maybe, but very happy. Even if the last word wasn't spoken, Jun had almost given in already. Everything that was left now was for Aiba to send Satomi a message and tell her how much he wished to keep that kitten to ensure she wouldn't take it from him. It wouldn't be a problem, animal lovers stuck together, after all!

=^. .^=

When Jun returned about 40 minutes later, his arms loaded with cat supplies that their neighbour had in reserve apparently, the kitten seemed to have adapted to the new place quite well, already. At least, it didn't seem to be shy or angsty anymore. To the contrary, it was stalking around the apartment together with Sho – who apparently had decided to become the kitten's companion no matter where it wanted to go – exploring every little corner of the place.

"I'm back," Jun announced, sounding a little tired.

"Welcome back! So... what did Satomi-chan say?" Aiba asked, immediately. 

He had not taken his eyes off the little cat, his face showing a mixture of happiness and worry, and so he only turned to look at Jun for a second before returning his attention to the kitten.

"As if you don't know," Jun said. Aiba couldn't see the rolling of his eyes, but he could imagine it. "She said there's noooo way she can't keep another kitten and _we_ should keep it. Confess, you two are in cahoots, aren't you?"

Aiba slowly turned his head to face his boyfriend, the guilt written all over his face and his puppy eyes attacking Jun mercilessly. He didn't say anything, he didn't need to, Jun knew exactly what was going on and there was no need to pretend otherwise. 

"This isn't the end, we can still find someone else! Didn't your sister tell us once she wants a cat too?" Jun raised an eyebrow.

Aiba didn't reply, and Jun wasn't sure if he ignored him or just silently accepted the fact that Jun did not yet fully agree on the idea of keeping the new pet. Probably, he'd save this discussion for later. Jun sighed. Well, they could postpone this, sure.

"So they _do_ get along, huh?" Jun mumbled instead as he saw big boy Sho keeping track of the little newcomer's every step. He'd be lying if he said he didn't find that cute.

It wasn't a big surprise, Sho was such a warm-hearted dog, he might be able to befriend a python. However, Jun would be lying if he said he was completely enthusiastic about the idea of having to share Aiba's attention with even more furry friends.

"They do! Sho-chan can't get enough of the kitten, he's trailing it and watching over it, it's so cute!" Aiba agreed. "Maybe you should let Satoshi join them?" he pointed at the terrarium of Jun's turtle which was standing next to the large TV screen.

"Definitely not!" Jun rejected vehemently.

There was not much to be seen of the turtle, who seemed to have dug itself into a bed of chipped wood, except one foot pressed against the plastic wall and some half eaten big leaves of lettuce laying on top of everything.

"I think he's asleep, also, as I said...," he narrowed his eyes a bit, looking at the kitten who just turned around that moment and arched its back at the sight of Jun before running away. "I don't trust that cat."

"Oh, come on, Jun, I'm sure they'll get along and become friends," Aiba giggled. "And I'm also sure, no matter how grumpy you are right now, you'll love the kitten too and it will love you and we'll be a big happy family! It's so adorable... Oh! I see you've been successful!" Aiba commented as Jun piled his haul in the middle of the living room.

There was a small litter box, a sack of cat litter, a few old toys, and two bags filled with cat food.

"Satomi-chan sends her regards by the way and she says she misses Satoshi," Jun started.

"Oh, she should come over to visit him again, soon, then," Aiba suggested, immediately.

Jun's lips curling into a proud smile, thinking of the affection their neighbour had for his turtle. When the couple had moved in together, Satoshi had managed to escape from his terrarium and had gone on an adventure through the open apartment door, onto the corridor. As Jun and Aiba had been busy with cleaning and unboxing stuff in the bedroom and the kitchen, respectively, no one hat noticed the turtle crawling through the apartment, outside, where Satomi, at the other end of the floor, found it and took care of it until she found his owner. The beautiful woman had claimed then, that the turtle seemed to have been very fond of her, and that it was reciprocal. Since then, she sometimes dropped by to say hello to the turtle and feed him some greens, smiling her gorgeous smile at him, and Satoshi seemed to love it. 

"I already invited her over," Jun replied. "Maybe when she sees the kitten, she'll reconsider to take it in," he added, eyeing his boyfriend from the side, who just pursed his lips but didn't dare to say another word.

So, Jun let the topic slip and instead pointed at the sack of cat litter and the cat food. "This should be enough for a few days, she said, although she recommended to buy some special food for young kittens for the first few weeks, and to let it get checked by a vet as soon as possible since it came from the streets."

"Sure! I wanted to call Kazama-pon, anyway," Aiba nodded. "What did Satomi-chan say she wants in exchange for all of these?"

"She said she doesn't need anything, it's just some old stuff and about the food, she ordered too much last time anyway, so we can keep it. The only things she wants -," Jun said, pulling out his phone from his pocket, "Are some cute cat pics and that I should give Satoshi a kiss from her."

Aiba burst out in laughter. "Sounds like her! I think we got this."

Jun reached out his phone to snap a couple of pictures of Sho and Nino to send to their neighbour.

The two were still playing around in the living room before the kitten finally came closer to inspect what Jun had brought. Immediately, it seemed to find a liking to one of the toys, in particular, a foamy green ball spiked with a bunch of brightly coloured feathers, starting to kick it through the room with Sho in tow.

While Jun took care to set up the cat litter in the bathroom to lessen the chances that the kitten might use any other place in the apartment as its toilet, Aiba reached for a bag of cat snacks and started tossing them around the living room, amused from seeing the kitten and Sho fighting over them, until he decided to give some only to the cat to make sure it got something to eat. Then, he pulled out his own phone to call his best friend Kazama, who worked as a vet in an animal hospital nearby.

After quickly telling him the whole story about the new kitten, he was pleased to find out that apparently, Kazama was on emergency weekend shift at the animal hospital, and if Aiba was feeling spontaneous and flexible, he could come over right away with the little rascal to have it checked quickly. Aiba thankfully agreed and hung up, rushing excitedly to the bathroom to tell Jun about the news.

=^. .^=

About half an hour later, Aiba unzipped his jacket once more, revealing the little kitten in front of his friend and placing it down on the freshly cleaned examination table. As if it knew where it had been brought to, the kitten immediately started meowing and even if Kazama was one of the kindest and calmest people Aiba knew, it seemed like the animal wanted to get away from him as far as possible. Aiba had to gently grab it and hold it in place while his friend started his examination. Now burying its face in Aiba's hands, the kitten was facing its back to the vet, stubbornly.

"You'll need a transport box," Kazama started, grinning amused before he gently pulled the kitten a little closer with his friend's help. "I mean, it's amazing how the kitten stayed inside of your jacket without scratching you."

"Ah," Aiba chuckled. "I think it likes me. But thanks, I'll add that to the list of things we need to get."

"Does it have a name yet, by the way?" the vet asked while continuing to check the kitten's ears and paws and touching its belly carefully.

"Not yet," Aiba slightly shook his head. "I have to admit I didn't even check properly to see if it's a boy or a girl..."

"That's easy to be solved," Kazama replied and carefully lifted the small cat, examining it. "Congratulations, it's a baby boy, Papa," he joked.

"Amazing," Aiba snorted, amused. "So, we're a 5 headed, all-men's family household, now."

His friend smiled at him before he turned to the drawer of a nearby desk and pulled out something that looked like a small passport. He opened it to start taking notes while mumbling.

"So, I think you're little boy here is a British Shorthair, the colour pattern is calico... he's... most likely three months old, at most... I think, you really should start thinking about a name, then, Papa, and don't forget to put it into the passport once you decided," Kazama suggested when handing the paper to his friend. 

Aiba quickly skimmed the filled in data. The field for the name of the animal was still blank, so were the following pages which seemed to provide space to fill in information for vaccinations and other important things about a pet's treatment. 

"It seems everything is fine with him. We should give him just some standard vaccinations, soon, when he's a little older. Let's make a new appointment in a few weeks. He's a little thin at the moment, so I'll give you some kitten food and a tube of a nutritious paste, I'm sure he'll love it and it will help to build up a little weight, so he stays stable. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to call me. And then, we should remember later on that the little boy needs to get neutered, probably in a few months."

"Oh gosh, poor boy," Aiba said, laughing, pressing the kitten close against his chest when Kazama handed it back to him. "But I guess it can't be helped. We can't afford you turning into a sexual powerhouse and populating the neighbourhood with little tigers, right?"

The kitten meowed innocently, unbeknownst about what was lying in the future.

=^. .^=

This time, Sho was already waiting behind the apartment door even before Aiba returned. As soon as the man had vanished _again_ with the kitten tucked into his jacket, Sho had laid down on the floor in the hallway, keeping an eye on the door in order not to miss his owner's return.

In the meantime, Jun had finished setting up the litter box. He already knew that there was no way he could deny Aiba his wish of keeping the kitten and apparently, Sho also already seemed to have adopted the little rascal, so he was overruled anyway.

The man was about to get a broom and dustpan to get rid of some spilled cat litter when his eyes settled on a small plastic bag filled with supplies, which had been abandoned in the bathtub. He quickly reached for it, remembering, that Aiba had said they had run out of something important, which had been his reason for going outside in the first place this morning. Jun was curious by nature, and since he and his boyfriend usually didn't keep any secrets from each other, he didn't find any reason not to take a closer look at the content of the plastic bag.

It seemed to be a purchase from the local pharmacy, judging from the printed logo on the outside of the bag. Still, there could be anything inside. What did they run out of recently... warmth pads? Cooling pads? Band-Aids? Jun had no idea and so he just took out the first item. Oh, it seemed that Aiba had planned to stock up on hay fever medicine – which both of them would need pretty soon, probably, so that was smart thinking – and there was a new box of face masks, which made sense too. There were some new small bottles of hand cream that Jun liked to bring with him wherever he went, and a few energy drink shots for Aiba (not that his boyfriend actually needed them, in Jun's opinion). The next item that Jun pulled from the bag was a packet of chocolate bits.

Jun smiled. He immediately recognized that it was his favourite, and it was obvious, that Aiba had gotten them especially for him. Why was his boyfriend so freaking cute? Of course, he couldn't deny him any wishes!

Still smiling, Jun fished for the last two items in the bag and his smile drew into an even wider grin when he realized what he was holding in his hand. So _that_ must be the important stuff they had run out of, he thought. It was indeed Aiba who had a better overview on how much of these items were left, so it was a good thing that he was keeping track.

It was a pack of condoms and a tube of lube. When Jun realized that Aiba had even chosen some new brands they hadn't used before, he took a closer look.

"Oh and what's that... massage gel and lube in one, passion fruit scent... now that sounds interesting," he murmured to himself.

When he heard the apartment door being unlocked and Sho barking cheerfully, he smirked, packed all the items from the pharmacy back into the bag and took it with him as he went out to the hallway.

Aiba was already being tackled by Sho's love attacks again, struggling not to fall over and drop the little kitten which meowed in a slight panic as Aiba finally stumbled forward. Luckily nothing happened, as the man could catch himself in time and quickly freed the little cat who jumped right into Sho, as if giving him an "I'm back!" hug – or try to strangle him, Jun wasn't completely sure which it was.

After a cheerful, literal "I'm back!" – even without tackling his boyfriend – Aiba started to report some details from the kitten's visit to the vet, as he passed Jun in the hallway, while the kitten started running straight back into the living room, with Sho on its heel.

Jun just smiled at him and reached out his hand to take Aiba's in his, intertwining their fingers and accompanying him into the living room after pressing a "Welcome back" kiss on his boyfriend's cheek.

"By the way, thank you for the chocolate," Jun said. "I really appreciate your thoughtfulness. And... let's try your new discovery later on." He winked at his lover.

Aiba grinned, pleasant anticipation painting his face. "Sure thing!"

Admittedly, Jun had expected the chaos to be breaking loose in the living room in the next few hours, and he wondered if he and his boyfriend would even have just a little time for themselves this evening. The cat and the dog almost flipped over the couch in their attempt to play tag and the kitten managed to ruin one of the living room curtains while climbing up the fabric to get a better view on the apartment until it realized it was too scared to climb back down on its own.

"Oh! I nearly forgot, we need to find a name for the kitten!" Aiba exclaimed while he climbed up a step ladder and tried to get the panicking cat down from the curtain rail.

The kitten meowed desperately, but let Aiba take it down, eventually. Its reunion with Sho was heart-warming as the dog started licking the small cat's head as soon as Aiba set it back down on the floor and the kitten lay down to roll on the floor, its paws up in the air, trying to catch Sho's fluffy fur between them. Suddenly remembering that it must have been a while since the kitten actually ate something more substantial than just snacks, Aiba jumped up, darting towards the kitchen with the small bag he had received from Kazama. Jun followed him, as well as Sho and the kitten – because who knew what they could miss?

"Is it a girl or a boy?" Jun asked while Aiba searched for a small dish and pulled out one of the kitten food cans to open it up for the little cat.

"A boy, apparently."

"A boy," Jun chuckled. "So we're an all-men's-household now."

"I said the exact same thing!" Aiba exclaimed, overjoyed, especially over the implied agreement from Jun to keep the kitten, and flashed his boyfriend his widest smile. 

" _For_ now," corrected Jun, locking eyes with Aiba. Just because he mentally already gave in, it didn't mean he couldn't tease his boyfriend a little longer with pretending to be uncertain about the plan of keeping the cat.

"Anyway... he needs a name," Aiba replied, falling into thoughts.

"Hm..."

Aiba had no idea where his inspiration came from, but as soon as he looked down to his feet at the kitten's adorable face and their eyes met, it was like it just communicated to his brain. He chuckled at the ridiculous thought, but why not go with it? He turned to Jun, who had started preparing Sho's food, and smiled.

"How about something starting with "Ni"?" Aiba suggested.

Jun blinked at his boyfriend. "Something with "Ni"?"

"Yeah, because... wouldn't it fit? Ni means two and he's the second furry roommate we got."

"Nightmare-chan," Jun immediately suggested.

Aiba laughed and slapped his boyfriend's shoulder slightly. "How mean you are!"

"Then, what about... Nigirisushi," Jun tried again, obviously joking. He grinned. "Bad?"

"He's not something to eat!" Aiba chuckled and then focused on trying to think of something by himself. "How about _Nino_?" Aiba asked. "It's simple... and sounds cute and cool at the same time, don't you think so?"

Jun tilted his head, looking at the kitten which had now started reaching his tiny paws up Aiba's foot as if it knew exactly that the man was preparing food for him.

"Sounds fine to me," the man shrugged.

"Great!" Aiba beamed at his boyfriend before he crunched down to pat the small kitten's head. "Isn't that amazing, Nino?"

The cat tilted its head, wondering, and meowed. This was how tiny Nino finally got his name.

"I think he likes it!" Aiba smiled as he got up and picked up the plate with cat food from the counter, pushing it towards his partner. "Would _you_ like to give him his food, Jun?"

Jun rolled his eyes and sighed, but still took the plate from his boyfriend's hand. "Fine, but then you give Sho-chan his."

"Food is ready!" Aiba exclaimed.

Nino started climbing up Jun's leg, ramming his tiny claws into Jun's comfy but still trendy loungewear pants, earning the man's immediate protest, mixed with painful little yelps. In contrast, Sho sat down in front of Aiba, patiently but joyfully anticipating receiving his own plate of food. Aiba chuckled at seeing Jun curse the small furball but being extra careful when picking it from his pants and placing it in front of the food, even brushing Nino's fur for a moment. Yes, Aiba was convinced, those two were on a good way to become friends, eventually, too.

=^. .^=

After the pets' food break, Aiba was back playing with Nino and Sho, which the kitten apparently really loved. When Jun asked if the little devil will be as active as that for the rest of the day, Aiba told his boyfriend, that it was quite normal for young cats. Jun slightly pouted and vanished behind his book, leaving his partner and Sho to play with the small animal.

"Are you jealous that I'm playing with the kids instead of with you?" Aiba teased Jun, throwing him a challenging look from the other side of the room.

"Don't be ridiculous, I'm not being jealous," Jun mumbled. "Why should I be jealous about a small kitten marching into our life and acting as if it owns the place... and our dog... and you?"

"Looks like King Jun is being upset because he got enthroned," Aiba playfully whispered to the cat and dog in front of him. He chuckled as he dared to glance at his boyfriend.

Jun just put his book down on his lap and darted a death glare at Aiba but said nothing, preferring to return to his page. Aiba giggled at his boyfriend's reaction, knowing that it wasn't as serious as the other might make it look like for the moment, and focused back on the feathery toy in his hand, which seemed to amuse both, Sho and Nino, to the fullest.

When Jun had finished a few more chapters and returned back to real life after his excursion to the world of his book, he found Aiba still playing with the pets. Or was it even part of a game, the man wondered, seeing his boyfriend trying to wrap Nino into a thick blanket.

"What are you doing now? Is this a protection shield from Sho or what?" Jun wondered out loud, abandoning his book and leaving the couch in favour of accompanying Aiba on the living room floor.

"We need to make sure he stays warm, so I thought maybe it's better to...," Aiba started but cut off his sentence, as the kitten struggled himself half free again.

"Don't you think you're a little overprotective?" Jun frowned, watching the spectacle. "You already rubbed him completely dry, you let him get checked by Kazama who said he's OK, Sho-chan is surely not gonna eat him, shouldn't that be enough for now?"

Aiba let go off the blanket and crossed his arms, wondering. In the meantime, Nino managed to escape from underneath the now completely loose blanket, but apparently, he did not expect Sho to jump on top and press the blanket down onto the floor, capturing the kitten all over again.

For a moment, Aiba panicked. He couldn't see what exactly Sho had done and he only saw a fluffy cream-coloured mountain throwing himself on top of a small helpless kitten, but after hearing Nino's protesting "Meow!" he quickly realized that nothing had happened. The kitten struggled a bit more, creating a wobbly bulge under the blanket. Eventually, it managed to free its tiny head which was now peeking out between Sho's legs, who leaned forward and licked the kitten's head, lovingly, just to receive small gentle pats from one of Nino's paws in response, accompanied by a purr.

"You know what?" Aiba giggled. "I think, they are in love."

"Obviously," Jun snorted. He rolled his eyes, but still followed along with his boyfriend's observation.

=^. .^=

Everyone was up very late that night in the Aiba-Matsumoto-household. This was not because the two men couldn't stop binge-watching one of their favourite TV-series or because they kept each other up all night with trying to find out if they could break their record of how often they could have sex in a row, which Jun might have preferred as their evening occupation. No, this was because Aiba still couldn't get enough of playing with their new pet, much to his boyfriend's displeasure.

"When will this little brat finally get tired?" Jun lamented, half dropping from the couch, holding the cat toy Aiba had placed in his hand while he was getting them something to drink.

"Look, he already absolutely defeated our poor Sho-chan," Jun pointed at Sho who was now functioning as Nino's pillow, the dog completely exhausted and was obviously trying to sleep which was impossible though with the kitten dancing on top of him.

Aiba crouched in front of the couch, holding a glass of water towards his partner and smirked at him. "Seems like he also defeated _you_ , although it was _me_ who played with him the whole time."

"Well, I don't know where _you_ are getting your energy from, either," Jun pouted and then took the water, sipping from it before handing it back to Aiba who placed it on the living room table. "Let's just go to bed, OK? That little brat can entertain himself, don't you think?"

Aiba chuckled softly, reaching over to kiss Jun's temples. "You're right, it's late, let's call it a day."

"Finally," Jun whispered, dropping the cat toy in response.

Nino jumped forward in an ambitious attempt to catch the falling toy, slipped from Sho's silky fur and meowed in protest when he landed on the floor. The dog's head shot up, immediately fully awake again. Sho looked around, confused before he got up and dedicated his full attention to the clumsy little kitten which was now fighting with the cat toy in a lying position. The dog nudged the kitten with his big nose as if to ask if he was OK. Nino just meowed in reply and got back to his toy.

Jun had already gotten up and went into the bathroom, brushing his teeth and trying his best to take care of his face, washing and pampering it properly. In contrast, Aiba had been dressed in an oversized old t-shirt since shortly after dinner. The man had this useful habit of getting ready for bed very early so that he could just go to the bedroom and drop onto the bed whenever he felt like it. Jun silently cursed himself for yet to have adopt this habit from his boyfriend.

When the man reached the bedroom, he saw Nino jumping on top of the bed, accompanied by Aiba's laughter. He considered for a second to go back to the living room and sleep there, but his boyfriend had already reached out for him and pulled him onto the bed. Within seconds, Nino was climbing over Jun's belly, his tiny paws stepping onto the exact spots that hurt.

"Ouch, Masaki, take the kitten from me!" Jun wailed but when he instinctively turned to his side, the kitten jumped down from him anyway, approaching Jun's bedside table which apparently appeared extremely interesting to the cat, all of a sudden. "You don't intend to allow him to sleep in our bed, do you?"

Jun groaned when just a few seconds later his bedside lamp crashed to the floor – thankfully it wasn't something too fragile, but still, he was extremely annoyed by then – and Aiba reached over him to take Nino in his hand and scold him.

"Don't ruin Papa-Jun's things, you hear me, young man?" Aiba said in a voice that was probably intended to sound strict.

"Why can't he just stay outside of the bedroom, like Sho-chan?" Jun sighed while he weakly lifted one of his hands and pointed towards the still open bedroom door, where Sho was standing but looking inside the room longingly, being a good boy following Jun's one and only really effective rule in this house, "No pets in the bedroom!"

"He's a cat, not a dog, cats don't listen to humans so easily," Aiba chuckled.

"Well, great!" Jun resigned, crossing his arms on top of his chest and throwing his boyfriend a cranky look. "Then tell me, how this is supposed to work from now on?"

Aiba looked from Jun to Nino to Jun and back to Nino. "I guess we have to put him outside of the bedroom and lock the door, then."

"So, please... if you'd be so kind," Jun said, not making any efforts to get up by himself and leaving the task to his boyfriend.

"Say goodnight, Nino-chan," Aiba said, holding the kitten's back pressed to his chest and moving one of his paws to make it do a waving gesture, trying to make Jun laugh.

He didn't succeed, so Aiba gave up and got up from the bed, carrying the little kitten outside. Sho immediately followed on Aiba's heel when the man went to the living room, talking to cat and dog and telling them to share Sho's dog bed for the night until they would buy a separate one for Nino.

When he came back to the bedroom, Jun still had not moved to pick up the bedside lamp from the floor, so Aiba went to Jun's side of the bed and picked it up for him. Then, he sat down at the edge of the bed and reached to his boyfriend in order to carefully pull off his glasses.

Jun had his eyes closed already but had taken notice of Aiba's gesture and whispered "Thanks," just to be interrupted with a loving gesture. Surprised, Jun's eyes flickered open.

Aiba had leaned over his boyfriend and captured his lips with his own. After a gentle kiss that only lasted for a second, he drew back a little, just in order to flash Jun one of his flawless sunshine smiles that made him look cute and incredibly attractive at the same time. He leaned back down, and Jun slightly moaned into their second kiss, closing his eyes again. Aiba moved until he was lying on top of his boyfriend, one knee thrown over his hip while the other slightly pressed between Jun's legs, his elbows pinned to the sides of Jun's head. He kissed him again and again, before he started to trail down from Jun's lips to his jawline, over his chin, his Adam’s apple and down his neck until he paused at the exposed collarbones to shower them with more tiny kisses.

Jun just let it happen, although he knew that he would possibly not be physically able to return the favour tonight, as he felt just barely able to move his tired limbs. Of course, he didn't push Aiba away, though, as the man started proceeding further, letting his hand slip underneath Jun's T-shirt and moving down. His lips to start kissing the man's upper belly.

"Masaki, I'm not sure if... I'm tired...," Jun murmured as a fair warning, his eyes already half closed, partly from the tiredness, partly from the pleasant sensation of his boyfriend's lips covering him, lulling him in.

"I know," Aiba said in a low voice, looking up at his boyfriend. "That doesn't mean I can't make you relax even a little more, right? You're a little moody today, I want to make you feel good. May I?"

"I'm sorry," Jun sighed and didn't protest any longer. Instead, he reached his hand and buried his long fingers in Aiba's hair, starting to slightly massage his scalp. He whispered, "Of course I like you making me feel good, Masaki..."

"I love you," Aiba said in between two kisses on Jun's belly. "Thanks for letting my stubborn head get what it wants," the man continued, obviously referring to the Nino-situation.

"I think it was your big heart talking when you found the kitten," Jun said, feeling his lips curl up into a smile. "And that's why I can't say no to you."

Aiba smiled back at his boyfriend before returning his attention to kissing his body, and Jun was convinced that he could stay like this forever, feeling the soft warm lips of his beloved partner all over him, his warm big hands caressing his sides... it was feeling _really_ good.

The mood was interrupted soon, though, when suddenly, there was a strange noise coming from outside the bedroom door. First, Jun tried to ignore it, but when it became louder and louder, and more and more persistent, he just couldn't ignore it any longer. He sighed deeply, filled with frustration.

Apparently, Nino had started scratching at the door like crazy, throwing in some meows here and there, as if his one and only goal was to scratch himself through the wooden door and keep on bugging Jun for the rest of the night.

"Is that cat being serious?!" Jun exclaimed, sitting up in bed, making Aiba do the same.

"Aw... he wants to sleep in the same bed as his parents," Aiba joked, grinning, but the only reaction he got from Jun was an unnerved groan. "Just ignore him, OK? He'll stop if we don't react," Aiba continued, pressing his boyfriend back down onto the bed. "Let me distract you."

"Sho-chan, help! Come get your Nino and play with him!" Jun yelled through the door, hoping it would do the trick before he allowed his boyfriend to take care of _him_ again.

=^. .^=

The next morning, Aiba woke up to a loud sneeze. He turned his head, just to find Jun searching the inside of his bedside table for a packet of tissues. When the man finally found some and turned back, he saw that Aiba had woken up and quickly apologized for waking him before he proceeded to blow his runny nose.

"Sorry, Masaki, I know, very sexy," Jun sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Oh no, did you catch a cold?" Aiba asked the obvious, reaching out and gently squeezing his boyfriend's arm. "Come on, let's move to the living room, I'll make you breakfast and a warm cup of tea.

"Sounds awesome," Jun replied, smiling at the other man.

Aiba smiled. Of course, he wished Jun to be completely healthy, yet he couldn't help but find his boyfriend immensely cute, sitting there with his disheveled bed hair and a slightly reddened nose.

Since it was still a day off, the two men simply threw on some comfy loungewear and headed to the living room. For once, it seemed quiet. The reason for that was easily found. As soon as the two men entered the room, they spotted Sho and Nino still fast asleep cuddled up in Sho's dog bed in a very funny looking position. Nino had apparently decided that in between the edge of the comfy fabric bed and Sho's big fluffy back was the ideal spot to sleep, so he was hugging him from behind, his tiny paws not even covering nearly half of the big dog's back.

"Ohhh, look, he's trying to be the big spoon!" Aiba whispered, excited, pointing at the kitten.

"Pft!" Jun couldn't hold back a snort at his boyfriend's comment as well as the kitten's nerves. "That little shit."

"Watch your language, Jun!" Aiba replied, raising an eyebrow.

"Sorry," Jun playfully rolled his eyes. "That _adorable little terror_. Better?"

Aiba also rolled his eyes and grinned before he leaned forward to place a kiss on Jun's lips.

"Wait, what if you get a cold too, now?" his boyfriend immediately drew back, looking at Aiba, concerned.

"Then we'll have to take care of each other," Aiba smirked. "Now make yourself comfy on the couch and enjoy the silence before the kids wake up. I'll be right back with breakfast."

=^. .^=

The morning silence was over as soon as Sho opened his big round eyes and spotted Jun lying on the couch, a mug of tea and the television remote in hands, while Aiba was still setting the table in front of the couch with breakfast. The dog jumped up, wiggling his tail joyfully when he saw his owners. He immediately turned around though, when there was a tiny mewl coming from the bed he just left. Nino had slipped into the middle of the quite large dog bed and had woken up from the sudden movement. His paws were still tangled lazily when his tiny head shot up and his still half squinted eyes made him look like he wanted to say, "How dare you interrupting my beauty sleep?"

The dog quickly leaned over the little cat and started licking its head, as if trying to set the bed-fur in order.

It didn't take long for the kitten to properly wake up afterward, and so very soon the living room was indeed very lively once more. Aiba quickly prepared breakfast for the pets in the kitchen so they were distracted for a few minutes, but Jun already seemed to mentally prepare for trouble coming up.

And as if he had conjured it, of course, something happened just a couple of hours later while Jun was taking a nap on the couch and Aiba was busy with the laundry.

There was a crash, and Jun's eyes snapped open, just to find his beloved turtle's terrarium which was placed next to the TV stand fallen over, spilling all its content, including turtle Satoshi on the living room floor. Actually, Jun was convinced that the terrarium had not just simply _fallen over_ , but that there had been some little devil at work, and when he saw Nino trying to hide in the corner of the room right next to the crime scene, Jun's suspicion was confirmed.

He immediately got up, groaning, not only because of the sudden dizziness but also because of the frustration he felt towards the chaotic kitten. He went a few steps forward and quickly picked up Satoshi, as he spotted the poor turtle lying on its back, slowly and helplessly wiggling his small feet.

"What happened, is someone hurt?!" Aiba barged into the room. He took a look at the scene, and also immediately knew what must have happened. "Oh..."

"Look what he did, that's why I said I don't want to keep a cat!" Jun whined when Aiba came closer.

"What happened?" Aiba repeated, kneeling down beside his boyfriend.

Jun threw him a rather unnerved look. "I don't know, your little furry nightmare here tried to kill my Satoshi or something like that?!"

"Don't over-react, Jun, cats don't eat turtles," Aiba replied, trying to stay calm. "Maybe he just wanted to play with him? And I'd like to remind you that I told you it'd be better to get a glass terrarium for Satoshi, it would be more stable anyway."

"So this is _my_ fault now?! It was _your_ cat!" Jun exclaimed.

"He's not _my_ cat, he belongs to all of us, we are family!" Aiba retorted, looking around. "Right, Sho-chan? Nino?"

The dog had perked up his ears when hearing his name and was now throwing himself to the floor next to Aiba to claim some belly rubs, which his owner provided him with, immediately.

"I can see you, Nino, no need to try hiding in the corner!" Jun said before he narrowed his eyes at the kitten and added in a lower voice, probably only meant for Aiba to hear, if even, "If he thinks I can't see him like that, he's wrong. So wrong."

The cat just turned its head to face Jun, looking at him with those big round eyes, guilty, and while Aiba chuckled amused, Jun sighed deeply, focusing back on his turtle. He sat Satoshi back onto the floor and let him run (well, crawl) freely in the living room to explore the area while he and Aiba proceeded to pick up the terrarium ("At least it's not ruined from the fall, so it's good it's plastic?" Aiba prompted) and refill it with the spilled wood chips.

"And look at him! He obviously feels guilty," Aiba chuckled, seeing Nino turning around to face the wall again, his ears slightly droopy. "Please forgive him!"

Of course, Jun couldn't be mad for long, and as soon as the terrarium was standing again and Satoshi was munching on a few salad leaves on the living room floor, Nino seemed to be brave enough to come back from his corner. He even dared to carefully approach the turtle again, who just looked at him with its small black dotty eyes and kept on slowly scrunching up the salad with his tiny jaw. Nino came closer, all curious, probably wondering who this guy was and what he would taste like. The turtle did not seem to be the slightest concerned.

"And now he really looks at Satoshi as if he wants to eat him!" Jun said, but when he tried to reach for the cat, Aiba held him back and guided him back to the couch with him, ordering him to take some more rest and covering him with a fluffy blanket.

"He wants to play. To _play_! See?" Aiba pointed at the cat, demonstrating, who first nudged Satoshi's small head as if to pet it, and then proceeded to walk around him and take a closer look at his shell. A _very_ close look.

"Is he trying to _ride_ him?!" Jun almost freaked out when he saw Nino attempting to climb on top of the Satoshi's shell. "Take that cat away, Masaki, take him away, the turtle is not a taxi!"

"Calm down, Jun, everything's fine!" Aiba replied but stood up and picked up Nino to bring him to the couch, just to be on the safe side.

"I _still_ don't trust that cat!" Jun protested with a cute pout when Aiba dropped the kitten in his lap with a laugh.

And as if to agree, the second Jun reached his hands around the animal, not really knowing what to do with it now, the cheeky kitten had the nerves to bite his finger before it flopped itself over in his lap. Nino still did not let go of Jun's finger even when the man complained and instead started to kick at his hand with his tiny hind paws just to follow up with starting to purr like crazy. Jun had to admit that he was very confused about that behaviour.

=^. .^=

"I'm going for a walk with Sho-chan, you stay here and focus on recovering, will you?" Aiba announced to his boyfriend a few hours after lunch.

"Well, I can't do much, anyway," Jun sniffled between blowing his nose and reaching for the TV remote again to switch channels.

Aiba came back to the living room once more, assigning more tasks to those who were staying behind. "Nino, take care of Jun while we're gone, OK?"

"As if he would even care the tiniest bit about what happens to me," Jun snorted.

"Of course, he does, after all, you're one of his papas," Aiba replied.

"Don't _papa_ me, Masaki."

"Come here, Nino-chan, it's alright," the other man said, turning around to search the cat who was apparently busy with exchanging good-bye cuddles with Sho so that Aiba even had to pull them apart from each other to have a chance to get Sho moving. He picked up Nino and brought him back to the man on the couch, once more. "Look, you can cuddle with Jun while we are gone."

This time, Jun did not touch the kitten, just as a precaution.

His boyfriend chuckled amused. "Seriously, I can't wait until you love our third child just as much as I do..."

"Hm," Jun just snorted again, eyeing the kitten suspiciously.

=^. .^=

LINE conversation with Masaki.

Jun: Your son is terrorizing the TV.

Masaki: I'm sure, he's just curious, he probably never saw a TV before!

Jun: He saw it yesterday and didn't do anything? Let's see what you'll say when you see all the scratches.

Masaki: OK, stop him!

Jun: He's as fast as a ninja and I'm couch-ridden, no chance!

Masaki: We'll think about something...

10 minutes later

Jun: Now he's terrorizing the mirror in the hallway.

Masaki: What?

Jun: He's jumping at his own reflection. Sorry to say but I'm not sure if your son is the smartest of all creatures in this world.

Masaki: Hey! Don't insult our son! He's a little kitten, what do you expect? It's his play-and-discover-phase, he still has a lot of things to figure out!

Jun: Are all baby animals like that?

Masaki: Well, at least those who are a bit more energetic than a turtle.

Jun: Are you insulting _my_ son, now?

Masaki: Would never come to my mind.

Jun: Bring back Sho-chan quickly, he's a much better Nino-sitter than I am.

Masaki: On our way!

=^. .^=

When Aiba came back, he was surprised to find Jun and Nino playing on the couch, or rather... fighting with their fists. Confused, he kept watching the two while Sho, who was off the leash already, was approaching Jun and the kitten to greet them. The dog didn't dare to interrupt them then, though.

"What are you guys doing?" Aiba asked after a couple more seconds.

"Making friends," Jun replied, quickly exchanging a look with his boyfriend before returning his attention to Nino. "I thought you'd appreciate that?"

"You're fighting," the other man simply stated.

"That's how real men make friends, right, Nino?" Jun released a burst of deep laughter, accidentally irritating the cat who then jumped at him, his claws stretched out, and hit his face. "Ouch!"

Aiba couldn't help but laugh, seeing Jun scolding the cat to take care of his face and Nino jumping from the couch and right into Sho, welcoming him happily. The two immediately set off running a few rounds through the living room, playfully.

"There, there," Aiba patted his boyfriend's head, burying his hand in Jun's fluffy, slightly curly hair. He loved the feeling of it between his fingers.

Jun looked up at him, his lips drawn into a slight pout. "I really tried," he proclaimed. "But he loves Sho-chan more than me."

"Wow, now this went really fast from not liking the cat at all to being jealous of a dog regarding the cat's affection," Aiba chuckled, settling next to his boyfriend and putting his arm around his shoulder.

Jun leaned a bit closer, his head against Aiba's cheek. Aiba reached his hand to Jun's forehead to carefully check if he was feverish, but his boyfriend's temperature seemed to be OK.

"I'm not a heartless papa after all," Jun said, cuddling closer and wrapping his arms around his lover's waist.

"No, my love, you're not, I know," the other man replied in a whisper and pressed a kiss on top of Jun's head. "What do you think, maybe we should get a leash for Nino too and take him with us when we go on a walk outside?"

Jun frowned. "He's a cat, Masaki, not a dog."

"I'm not blind, thanks," Aiba replied, giggling. "Still, he might like it and he can learn from Sho how it works, right, Sho-chan?"

Sho, again, had the kitten trapped underneath his paws and was very busy cuddling him.

"We will have to deal with accusations of our kids showing too much public affection, you know that?" Jun said, pulling the corners of his beautiful lips up into a smirk.

Aiba shrugged. "Maybe society isn't so strict when it's cute cats and dogs?"

"How unfair," Jun replied.

He turned his head and started placing light kisses all over Aiba's neck, who giggled slightly at the ticklish feeling but then threw his arms around Jun and pulled him down to lie on the couch together with him.

"Good thing, we're not in public, now."

"Although, I'd prefer a quieter place for our privacy," Jun murmured, obviously referring to the hullabaloo caused by their pets in the background.

"I think, I can help with that," Aiba murmured in a deep voice.

He shuffled again and two seconds later, he was carrying his precious boyfriend bridal style into their bedroom, firmly pushing the door closed behind them with his foot, just to make sure they'd be completely undisturbed.

=^. .^=

Over the next few weeks, Jun and Nino continued their attempts of trying to get along. Whenever the cat was bugging him, Jun threatened to give him away, until one day, Aiba broke down in tears and said he couldn't take it anymore to imagine he had to part from his little Nino. On that day, Jun finally stopped saying they couldn't keep the little fur ball and even signed some inofficial adoption papers Aiba created for the sake of making his boyfriend keep his words. 

Jun would be a liar anyway, if he said he didn't love the cat, too, at least, sometimes. OK, all the time except when it ruined some of his things, then he would get angry and scream, and Nino would hide behind Aiba or Sho until angry Jun had calmed down again. In the end, the two seemed to have reached a point of mutual understanding and settled with some kind of love-hate-relationship, which, according to Aiba, was also a special form of love. Maybe, biting Jun's toes and scratching his couch was just Nino's twisted way to show his affection? Jun just rolled his eyes without any further comment.

Nino was a little brat, no doubts, claiming not only the whole apartment but also its owners as his personal possessions and wanting to play all the time and willing to cuddle only when _he_ wanted, just like every cat who thought great value of themselves. He even was a little brat towards Sho at times, although he seemed to have a soft spot for the dog. Even more than nagging him, he enjoyed spending time with him cuddling (or nibbling on his large ears).

Sho kept on loving his little kitten and looking after him, not caring if the little rascal wanted to play, to cuddle or simply annoy him. Good thing that Sho was such a chilled and kind-hearted dog who mostly let Nino just have his way or even supported him in his doings. Jun called it "Sho-chan is spoiling Nino, again!" but then, if everyone was completely honest, the dog wasn't the only one in this household spoiling the little kitten. Not even Jun was immune against his overwhelming cuteness and even used went as far as visiting a special pet shop at the other end of the city to get some extra delicious treats for the little rascal.

Just a few days after Nino had moved in with them, Aiba decided to create a twitter account for him and Jun with a shared password to regularly post the stories and adventures of Sho, Nino and Satoshi under the hashtag "turtletaxi" (inspired by one of Nino's favourite pastimes – trying to ride the turtle) and to document their amusing happy family life. It was an immense challenge to keep whirlwind Nino in place when they tried to take a family picture with all five of them for their icon, but after a few scratches on Jun's forearms and a bunch of failed shots, their mission could be declared accomplished.

Their most popular posts included for example captions of turtle Satoshi snapping at Nino's paws while the cat had passed out on the floor, completely exhausted, after playing with Sho for hours. Or, fitting their hashtag, Nino using Satoshi's back as a form of transportation, being absolute chill while the turtle took ages to cross the living room once. Apparently, Nino also loved using Sho's back for rides, probably, a seat up there was comfier and, let's be honest, Sho was much faster than Satoshi, which could come in handy, especially if Nino needed a lift to get away from some damage he caused before Aiba or Jun noticed his involvement. At least, the kitten seemed to think it could fool the two men.

Jun, who in the beginning considered Aiba's idea of a twitter account silly, turned out to be a very passionate photographer, and even more, seemed to love playing model and stylist with Nino, dressing the kitten up in various pet clothes and cosplays. Turning the kitten into a lion seemed to have been the most popular idea so far, although the giant strawberry head-piece was catching up on likes as well. 

Jun was also the one who found out that just recently, Nino's most favourite sleeping spot was right underneath Sho's big ears. He didn't want to imagine how loud the cat's purring must be in the poor dog's ear. However, as always, Sho didn't seem to mind the company. In fact, he and Aiba never bought a cat bed for Nino as the cat was sharing Sho's bed every night, anyway. The two men, on the other hand, still kept their bedroom door shut – and locked, after finding out that Nino was capable of opening doors – in order to keep some privacy from their children.

Aiba couldn't believe how lucky he was that he even managed to get on video of how whiny Nino jumped full force into tired Sho before he cuddled his head and started nibbling on his ear, obviously wanting his attention. Sho didn't react first, resigned and tired, but in the end, he couldn't resist and even tilted his head so that the cat ended up licking his nose.

The short video became an all-times-favourite meme for showing someone's affection.

=^. .^=

THE END*

 

*or at least for here. Come join the fun and check out twitter #turtletaxi for more snippets and pics!

**Author's Note:**

> Most common typos during the writing process: "dong", "doh" or "dot" instead of "dog". And YES, I WAS tempted to type purrito instead of burrito, but decided against it for spelling's sake.
> 
> Also, big thanks as always to my betas jtaytt and kittykaty! <3


End file.
